BI101 Biological Concepts

for S2R 2013

Mission Statement: Park University provides access to a quality higher education experience that prepares a diverse community of learners to think critically, communicate effectively, demonstrate a global perspective and engage in lifelong learning and service to others.

Vision Statement: Park University, a pioneering institution of higher learning since 1875, will provide leadership in quality, innovative education for a diversity of learners who will excel in their professional and personal service to the global community.

Course Description: BI 101 Biological Concepts: Biological Concepts offers an overview of the fundamental facts and principles of modern biology. The course is designed for the non-science student who wishes to gain an understanding of current biological concepts and their relevance to problems of human society. Emphasis will be on life, its origin, chemistry,energy transformations, reproduction, generics, evolution, and ecology. At home laboratory activies are included. 3:3:4.

Educational Philosophy:

The facilitator’s educational philosophy is one of interactiveness based on lectures, readings, quizzes, dialogues, examinations, internet, videos, web sites and writings. The facilitator will engage each learner in lively exploration of ideas, issues and contradictions.

Learning Outcomes:Core Learning Outcomes

Describe the scientific method and be able to evaluate experiments using procedures and terminology of the scientific method.

Explain the basic chemistry of biological systems and how chemistry is used in the maintenance of living organisms.

Compare and contrast the processes of mitosis and meiosis with reference to the movement of chromosomes and their significance in the transmission of genetic information.

Discuss the theory of evolution and the many different mechanisms which are involved in evolutionary processes. Describe the various biomes and their placement and characteristics.

Describe the structure of DNA and illustrate its significance in determining the composition, characteristics, reproduction, and behavior of an organism

Describe the structure and function of a cell and its various parts; compare the structures of bacterial, plant and animal cells

Grading:Grades will be awarded in this course based upon the following scale:

A = 90% and above
B = 80-89%
C = 70-79%
D = 60-69%
F = Below 60%

Late Submission of Course Materials:Materials may be accepted late with prior approval from the instructor. Contact the instructor as soon as a problem arises and the situation can usually be resolved.

Classroom Rules of Conduct:

This course contains an experimental portion with descriptions and expectations provided by your instructor. All answer sheets and other materials from these activities must be submitted in compliance with the instructor's direction. Several of these activities require an extended period of time to complete and should be scheduled accordingly.

LABS: The lab work for this course is to be completed at home and will require extra time during the week (1-2 hours extra on average). Some labs may involve several days of observation, so please take the time to understand the weekly time commitment. Labs will have very specific directions for completion and reporting. Directions, answer sheets and supplies are included in your home lab kit. The Experiment Supplies list should be examined as soon as possible so that you can prepare for these experiments.

Lab reports and answer sheets are due weekly and must be submitted through the e-Companion portion of the course.

QUIZZES: Each week you will need to complete a quiz that covers your readings. Quizzes will be taken in the e-Companion portion of this course. Weekly quizzes may be taken as many times as necessary, but a minimum of 80% is required to get credit for the quiz. After everyone has completed a particular week's quiz, the correct answers will be posted so that you can go back and use these quizzes to study for the final exam. YOU MAY WANT TO STUDY THESE QUIZZES FOR THE FINAL EXAM.

HOMEWORK: The instructor will assign weekly homework assignments. Homework assignments will be submitted through the e-Companion portion of the course.

GRADES AND FEEDBACK: You are responsible for checking the Gradebook weekly to be sure that grades have been entered.

CHECK YOUR PIRATE MAIL: Students should use email for private messages to the instructor and other students. All emails sent to the instructor must include "BI101" in the subject line of the email.

Academic Honesty:Academic integrity is the foundation of the academic community. Because each student has the primary responsibility for being academically honest, students are advised to read and understand all sections of this policy relating to standards of conduct and academic life. Park University students and faculty members are encouraged to take advantage of the University resources available for learning about academic honesty (www.park.edu/current or http://www.park.edu/faculty/).from Park University 2012-2013 Undergraduate Catalog Page 97

Plagiarism:Plagiarism involves the use of quotations without quotation marks, the use of quotations without indication of the source, the use of another's idea without acknowledging the source, the submission of a paper, laboratory report, project, or class assignment (any portion of such) prepared by another person, or incorrect paraphrasing. from Park University 2012-2013 Undergraduate Catalog Page 95

The instructor may excuse absences for valid reasons, but missed work must be made up within the semester/term of enrollment.

Work missed through unexcused absences must also be made up within the semester/term of enrollment, but unexcused absences may carry further penalties.

In the event of two consecutive weeks of unexcused absences in a semester/term of enrollment, the student will be administratively withdrawn, resulting in a grade of "F".

A "Contract for Incomplete" will not be issued to a student who has unexcused or excessive absences recorded for a course.

Students receiving Military Tuition Assistance or Veterans Administration educational benefits must not exceed three unexcused absences in the semester/term of enrollment. Excessive absences will be reported to the appropriate agency and may result in a monetary penalty to the student.

Report of a "F" grade (attendance or academic) resulting from excessive absence for those students who are receiving financial assistance from agencies not mentioned in item 5 above will be reported to the appropriate agency.

Disability Guidelines:Park University is committed to meeting the needs of all students that meet the criteria for special assistance. These guidelines are designed to supply directions to students concerning the information necessary to accomplish this goal. It is Park University's policy to comply fully with federal and state law, including Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, regarding students with disabilities. In the case of any inconsistency between these guidelines and federal and/or state law, the provisions of the law will apply. Additional information concerning Park University's policies and procedures related to disability can be found on the Park University web page: http://www.park.edu/disability .

Rubric

Competency

Exceeds Expectation (3)

Meets Expectation (2)

Does Not Meet Expectation (1)

No Evidence (0)

Synthesis Outcomes1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Exceptional analysis of knowledge gained through critical thinking based on analysis of experiments.

Able to critically think in the analysis of experiments.

Limited use of knowledge but no evidence of critical thinking based on analysis of experiments

No evidence of critical thinking or use of knowledge gained

Analysis Outcomes2, 3, 4, 5

Exceptional capability to explain and describe organizational levels of biology

No evidence of knowledge of processes and their organizational importance

Evaluation Outcomes1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Exceptional ability to integrate the genetic, reproductive and evolutionary information to gain a deeper understanding of biological processes; evaluate functioning of ecosystems; critically evaluates the relationship of biology and chemistry

Integrate the genetic, reproductive and evolutionary information to gain a deeper understanding of biological processes; evaluate functioning of ecosystems; critically evaluates the relationship of biology and chemistry

Limited knowledge of information but lack of evidence of ability to integrate different areas

No evidence of knowledge of information along with inability to integrate different areas

Terminology Outcomes1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Accurately answers 80% of the objective test items

Accurately answers 60-79% of the objective test items

Accurately answers 40-60% of the objective test items

Accurately answers less than 40% of the objective test items

Concepts Outcomes1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Exceptional ability to describe the connections between different biological concepts

Able to describe the biological concepts and their interconnections

Some knowledge of concepts but lack of ability to describe connections

Little knowledge of biological concepts or ability to make connections

Application Outcomes1, 6

Able to create unique explorations of scientific problem and present results in a clear and concise manner

Demonstrates mastery of scientific method usage and presentation of results.

Can follow directions of exploration but limited ability to understand processes and the present the results

No evidence of ability to follow directions or to understand processes involved.

Whole Artifact Outcomes

Scores more than 90% on assessment exam

Scores between 70 and 90% on assessment exam

Scores 40-69% on assessment exam

Scores less than 40% on assessment exam

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